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The squadron served in support of the Royal Marines during the 1960s in the Far East initially (1963) with the Whirlwind HAS.7 and later with the Westland Wessex HU5. For some time the squadron was based ashore at HMS Simbang, at Sembawang in Singapore. The squadron stood down in 1971.[4]

847 Naval Air Squadron was reformed to take part in the Falklands campaign on 4 May 1982, operating 24 Westland Wessex HU.5 helicopters [5]:279 with Royal Naval personnel recruited mainly from RNAS Yeovilton. The aircraft were transported from the United Kingdom to the South Atlantic aboard RFA Engadine and the container vessel Atlantic Causeway.[6][Note 1]

Atlantic Causeway disembarked 12 Wessexes of 847 NAS on 1 June 1982, with the detachment from Engadine arriving on 9 June. The squadron's Wessexes, together with those of 845 NAS initially operated from San Carlos and provided much needed transport support to the advance of British forces on Port Stanley, with forward operating bases being set up at Teal Inlet and Fitzroy.[5]:280,2 After the surrender of Argentine forces on the Falklands on 14 June, 847 NAS relocated to Navy Point, a headland directly north of Port Stanley. 847 NAS remained in the Falklands until September 1982, providing air support to UK Forces.[5]:282

847 NAS was one of the longest serving units to see action in the Falklands war, spending some 4 months on the islands in total, and leading some members of the squadron to refer to the unit as "84-who?" The squadron was disbanded on 24 September 1982.[5]:283

The most significant deployment of recent years was to Operation Telic in Iraq. On 6 May 2006, one of the squadron's Lynxes was shot down over Basra in Iraq, by a surface-to-air missile (a Man Portable Air Defence System), killing 5 service personnel on board, including 847's commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Darren Chapman. This was the first British helicopter and only the second British aircraft downed (the first was an RAFHercules) due to enemy fire, in the war.

In 2005, the Gazelle reconnaissance helicopter was retired from service with the squadron.

Later, the Lynx AH.7s were replaced with the Lynx Mk9A variant, by the unit.